There Can Only Be One
by Dattebayo
Summary: Never bet with your friends' lives on the line. Never bet against friends themselves. Team 7 is trapped by their own faults and not in the nicest place in the world. This time around, the Forest of Death may prove to ruin more of those so innocent, those
1. Chapter 1: Today's For Ramen!

Hello. Haha, this is my first Naruto fanfic, unless you count that one that somehow got erased!! ::cries:: Um, yeah, so this was my failed attempt at some kind of story, which is in dsperate need of some editing, and a total...just...it should just be chopped up. But I felt if I did not get it out SOMEWHERE, I would be abandoning it. I wouldn't be so ashamed of it, it's just that I wrote this a while ago, about 6 months to be exact...It may not seem like much, but when I read what I wrote, it's just...ugly.

Wow, you must all be leaving now, since I'm insulting it sooo much. It's ok. I'm just telling you, you know?!? I happen to think it gets better bit by bit. I haven't written the last chapter since a couple months ago. I'm updating the 8 chapters I did, which is actually not a lot because the chapters are really short. I think the last one is the longest...I'm not sure. Anyways, just read it. Haha. Don't worry, I'm not going to say anything for all the other chapters that are being updated today because I'm updating them all at the same time, and it would just be done to same something everytime, when I'm uploading them all today. Anyways, just read, if you please.

**Disclaimer:** If I had a million dollars for every time I had someone ask me if I owned Naruto, I would be so poor...

**Chapter 1: Today's For Ramen, Not For Training!!**

The sun was shining upon Konoha village that day. It was shining upon the people, the flowers, the beautiful little homes. Naruto walked out of his own home that day at approximately 9 am. Today he was free.

Ok, that might have sounded a bit dramatic and cheesy. As in free, it means Naruto has no missions lined up for today, or any training required by Kakashi. Notice the word required. Naruto wasn't up for training today, even though his goal was to become the strongest ninja and eventually become Hokage. He had been training for days on end and decided it was time to take a break.

Walking to the ramen shop, he passed by Ino's flower shop and waved hi. He always saw her on his way to the ramen shop, which he of course visited almost every single day. He also passed Sasuke's house. He also lived by himself, he assumed.

Naruto suspected that Sasuke was out training by himself. If anything, he liked that better, without having him and Sakura in the way of his progress. Even though, as mentioned before, there was no training session today, that doesn't matter to Sasuke. He trains himself to the max every single day.

And of course, Naruto suspected that he wouldn't be seeing Sakura around either, although he really, really wanted to. He naturally assumed that wherever Sasuke was, every girl in the village was there too. And he knew Sakura was definitely one of those girls. She was probably his number one fan now that they were on the same team. It was a shock to still find Ino at the flower shop. Guess she didn't get the memo about where Sasuke usually trains or something.

As Naruto was nearing the restaurant, he saw Rock Lee, and they crossed paths.

"Hey Naruto! Wanna go train with me?" Lee asked politely with absolute delight. Sure, they were on different teams and all, but he knew they were somewhat friends. It would be fun training with someone else for a change.

"Hey Fuzzy Eyebrows!! Sorry, I would but I'm just not in the mood too. I'm gonna go get ramen though. Wanna come eat with me? Naruto did not like Rock Lee at all, when he FIRST met him, but now, he has come to respect the Fuzzy Eyebrows, and even stick up for him!

"Oh. Well, I gotta train though. Maybe I'll come to the ramen place later. I know that when you're hungry, you'll eat all day! Kind of like Chouji, except you're basically just obsessed with ramen, rather than food." Lee replied.

"Yeah. Well, I guess I'll see ya then. Don't let Neji beat ya up!!" Naruto scrambled off on his way to the ramen shop, finally, and on the opposite end of the road, Lee disappeared into the horizon, waving bye.

"Ramen! Ramen! Ramen here I come!!" Naruto had finally arrived. He was about to sit upon his usual favorite stool at the counter, when he came to notice that someone else's posterior was already placed upon it. That person had bedhead blue-black hair, with long bangs. His clothes were the same ones as usual and his usual bandage wrappings wrapped around his arms and legs.

"Sasuke...? I'm surprised to see YOU here! I thought you would be training!" Naruto was totally stupified to see the aloof memeber of his Team 8 here eating ramen instead of working his ass off running laps or getting trained by Kakashi one-on-one.

"Naruto..." Sasuke turned around to hace the blonde boy. He wiped a couple of loose bangs from in front of his hair and turned his red-sharingan eyes on his teammate. "I'm taking a break from training."

"Break? BREAK?! But it's 9 AM!! You mean to tell me that you were training before 9 AM on a SUNDAY?!" Even during those days of proving everyone wrong about him being the weakest of the Chunnin exam finalists, those days where he trained all day and night with Jiraiya in order to prepare himself against Hyuuga Neji, even then, the earliest he would start training on weekdays were AT 9 AM. But Sasuke..."What time did you start?!?"

"5 AM. Oh, and could you please stop being so annoyingly loud?" Naruto was totally yelling in his ear and he was starting to get pissed off. It's not like it was anything new though, but his tolerance to Naruto's rants have not increased one bit. He annoyed him then, he annoys him now.

"5 AM?!? BUT, WHAT COULD YOU BE TRAINING SO HARD FOR AT 5...Wait a minute. I know why we didn't have a training session today! Kakashi's training you privately, isn't he?!? That bastard! Is he showing you a move EVEN STRONGER than the CHIDORI?!?"

"NARUTO!!!!! SHUT. UP." Sasuke was completely tired from his earlier training. He didn't need Naruto's damn yells on top of that. "Now...Just, sit down and eat your damn ramen!" Naruto sat down. He was completely shocked to see that Sasuke could get so emotional over something as little as Naruto being loud. He was ALWAYS loud, and it never bothered him before! ...Did it?

"By the way, Naruto, Kakashi was not training me today. So stop worrying. Why would I lie?"

"I don't know. You're so strange and mysterious, you could have your reasons!! How am I supposed to know what they are?" Naruto wanted to know badly! Why was Sasuke so...Sasuke-ish?!?

"Just eat." And with that comment from Sasuke, they both got served a bowl of ramen, and slurped their noodles in silence. Well, except for the slurping sounds...As in silence, it means, they didn't talk to each other for a while.


	2. Chapter 2: In Search Of The Number One R...

**Disclaimer:** I don't think I'd be a very good owner of Naruto. I would give in to all the pleas for a published novel or something. Nevermind.

**Chapter 2: In Search Of The Number One Rookie**

Sakura knew that Sasuke would be training early today, as he does most days, and she told her mom strictly to wake her up at around 6 am, so that she could go train. Sure, she was really lying and she just told her that so that she could go secretly watch Sasuke, but unfortunately, she didn't even wake up before noon! Her mom had totally forgotten to! Sakura was extremely angry at her, and of course, she had to pretend to be angry at her because she supposedly lost her 'valuable training time". She had woken up at 12:15, a litle bit after noon, and went in search for Sasuke at his usual training spots, but to her dismay, he was nowhere to be found.

Then, her stomach cried for anything edible known to mankind. She must have been in such a hurry to go and find Sasuke, that she left her house without even a pop-tart. She really, really, badly wanted to find Sasuke, but her stomach fought against her teenage emotions and it eventually convinced her to visit the nearest restaurant available: The Ramen Shop!

Sasuke and Naruto spent half an hour eating ramen. Once they got finished with one bowl, the ramen man would serve them another, until they just could not eat a single noodle more. Half an hour might seem like a short time to get so full, but you have to remember that this whole time, Sasuke was not saying a single word to Naruto, and neither was Naruto to Sasuke. They ate with their utmost speed.

"So..." Naruto started saying, untying his belt to give his belly more room to expand, "Are you going to go back and train now?"

Sasuke was about to answer, but then a bundle of pink hair caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. It was Sakura.


	3. Chapter 3: Stirred Up

**Disclaimer:** Too bad I can't make this preceding statement to this chapter as entertaining as the new Naruto Opening! ::swoons::

**Chapter 3: Stirred Up**

"Sasuke-kun!" squealed Sakura from the other side of the ramen shop. No one could imagine her utmost relief at finally locating the position of her super-crush. She ran over to the bar to where Sasuke, and the annoying Naruto were currently sitting at. Why couldn't it have been her that was sitting next to Sasuke?!? For all she knew, she deserved it, after looking around forever as to where he was. But for now she was happy, because now she could finally stare into his deep, dark eyes and admire the light that hit his every soft strand of hair. She was in heaven.

Sakura had placed herself down to the left of Sasuke, as Naruto was on his right. Her staring of the Uchiha boy was so obvious that Sasuke started to become uncomfortable. It wasn't like this was any surprise to him, as he knew he was the most wanted piece of meat within all the genin ninja girls. But when Sakura looked at him so closely like that, scrutinizing his every square inch of skin, it just made the temperature controls underneath his skin go high, and his whole face felt hot and red. Why?

"Sakura-chan! Glad you could join us for lunch!! Want some of my ramen?" Naruto began to notice the tension between Sakura and Sasuke and decided to be the one to break the ice. It's not like the tension didn't affect him either! He only had the most major crush on the pink-haired genin girl! He didn't exactly feel good when she was looking at another guy, might he add, the luckiest guy on the face of Konoha, with such a deep admiration. Of course, Naruto could tell that the only reason Sasuke seemed to be breaking down under the pressure was because he just didn't like people staring at him. If it had been Naruto staring at him like that, I'm sure he would have blushed all the same! It's not like he had any feelings for Sakura, or for any girl on that matter, so why would he have any reason to believe that he was blushing because of teenage hormones taking over his every thought?

Sakura had totally diregarded the comment Naruto made. But it's not like it made any difference because at that moment, Sasuke had also begun to realize that he should totally disregard her and completely turned his body away from hers. He took out some yen and placed it on the counter and he began to exit the ramen shop.

'Oh, mittens!' Sakura thought, as she sadly saw her object of affection began to walk away from her. 'I'm sure he's just shy. Yeah, shy. He's never had a girlfriend before, so of course he'd be shy. Yeah, Sakura, just breathe normally again...' Oh! But she could just feel her Inner Sakura just wanting to go after Sasuke, to wherever he was going, even if it be to the deepest ends of hell! Unfortunately, she knew her obvious scrutinizing of him had made him a little upset, and if she was to go after him again, if would only just turn him off. She figured it would be best to just end her Sasuke-chasing for today, so that he'd have time to forget about the incident.

It's not like she had anything to worry about though, because at the very moment the dark-haired boy was about to exit the restaurant, another genin came rushing in with full-speed and completely knocked over her Sasuke. Wait a minute, she did have something to worry about, because...it was...

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry Sasuke!" Rock Lee was good at heart, and even though there was natural rivalry between the two genin, outside and inside the "ring", they had complete respect for each other. "I was, just in such a hurry to see your fellow team member, Naruto! I was gonna meet him here for lunch, but I came late because I had to go do 500 push ups first!"

Lee was still upset thinking back to his training a couple minutes ago. He couldn't believe it took him almost half an hour to do only 500 push-ups!!! 'That's it. When I go back to train some more, I'm gonna have to do 700 punches. And if I can't do those, even if I can only do 699, then I'll have to do 1000 stomach crunches!!!' Lee loved making his body work to the limit. It was all he could do to make himself stronger, seeing as he didn't have the ability to use gejutsu or ninjutsu like practically every other genin that exists!

Sasuke was somewhat bothered by being pushed down. He understood it was an accident, but it is that exact reason that made him even more upset. It upsetted him because how could someone completely knock the wind out of him in a single hit, without even wanting to do it on purpose? He knew Rock Lee was a strong guy, but it truly angered him to admit that at some instances he felt weaker than the bobbed-hair genin.

But it was incredible how in a matter of seconds, that anger started to build within Sasuke. What was wrong with him today? Why was he losing control of these emotions he never knew he could express so strongly?? So the next thing that escaped from his mouth, was something he would regret. "Watch it next time!"

"I said I was sorry Sasuke. It truly was an accident!" Rock Lee wasn't intimidated. He had to stand up for himself, especially since he knew that beautiful pink-haired genin girl of his most secret desires. He had to show his strength and everything that he was working up for until now. But at the same time, he did not want to get into a fight with a guy that he had incredible respect for, especially since he had the love of HIS love.

"Whatever. Just get out of my way, ok?" Sasuke's anger had coiled down a bit, but it was still a bit hard to just forgive and forget the guy. Why? Why was he losing his cool so badly? "I'M SORRY, DAMMIT! What's else do you want me to say, huh? If it'd make you better, we could settle this with a fight? What do you want huh? Because obviously me repeatedly saying sorry means nothing to you!!" Rock Lee was just losing it to. He had to stay strong. He couldn't appear weak...

"Come on, just...Wait..." Sasuke liked the idea of a fight. It would definetely test the training he has been working hard at and endured for the past couple weeks. "How about we make a bet?"


	4. Chapter 4: A Done Deal

**Disclaimer:** I really shouldn't be writing this. I do own Naruto. ::nods:: He happens to be both in my laptop and in my bookbag and in my dresser and on my desk and on this random table all at the same time. Merchandise counts, right?

**Chapter 4: A Done Deal**

"A bet?" Rock Lee asked with a very confused loon on his face. Now, why would a bet settle this? It wasn't Rock Lee's nature to make bets like that, as his mother would probably scold him, especially if it involved something degrading or illegal. But he had to keep his form in front of all the Genin, especially Sakura. Maybe, if he won the bet, WHEN he wins the bet, she might just change her mind about him and offer him to go to the movies with her! Yes! It would all work out! He could beat the Sharingan! He really could! "Ok. A bet it is. So, what would this bet entitle Sasuke?

Sasuke noticed the confusion that had before clouded the eyes of the fellow Genin now turn to eagerness. There was no turning back on the bet now, or Rock Lee might make him look bad. Besides, the whole point of this was to prove to all that he was stronger than Rock Lee. And he really needed to find that out, since he never got a chance to fight him. He had to know. "Well, it would have to be something that would measure our strength. And our intelligence of course...But what..."

"And our teamwork!" Rock Lee said with eagerness. Gai-sensei had always said those were three very important qualities in ninjas (I'm just making this up.): Strength and the desire to win, Intelligence and the ability to look underneath the underneath (He got that from Kakashi.), and Teamwork and their cooperation with fellow Genin.

"But this is a bet between just the two of us. There would be no way we could measure teamwork with just the two of us, unless we were on the same team, which we can't be because of the fact that we want to measure the difference in ninja ability between us." Sasuke wasn't following Rock Lee at all.

"Well, Gai-sensei always said that teamwork was a part of ninja ability, so how could we properly measure ninja ability without teamwork? Unless, our teams could do the bet with us! Rock Lee knew he was smart! He didn't have to bea genius ninja like Neji, and Sasuke in order to comprehend and strategize. Just like his lovely Sakura. She didn't let her physical inability get in the way of her sharp mind.

"BUT THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE A BET BETWEEN US! IT WOULD HAVE NO POINT IF WE DID IT WITH OUR TEAMS! JUST LEAVE THEM OUT OF THIS!!" Sasuke REALLY couldn't have their teams going against each other. All he wanted was to fight Rock Lee. No one else. At least, not at the moment. What the hell was with the team suggestion??

"Why do you have to get SO angry? If it upsets you that much, then fine! We WON'T do the bet with our teams! I just thought it was a great idea seeing as a ninja is not someone who fights for himself, but for others too. And especially for their teammates! With out teammates there, we could have a more challenging bet because not only do you have to watch your back, but Naruto's and Sakura's. So the bet would have more meaning because it would also measure your ability to take care of your team, which is very important in a ninja, and very important for becoming a Chunnin!!!" said Rock Lee. Hehe.

" FINE!" Really. That was all Sasuke had to say. He REALLY hated team fights. But why was he acting so immature about it? Why was he acting all emotional today? There must have been something in the ramen or something, because Sasuke could never remember the last time he lost his cool so much. His attitude was the spitting image of Naruto's. Why?!

After all the fights and arguments that Sasuke had with both Naruto and Sakura, and all the missions that tested their teamwork and desire to save one another's lives, he would think that he wouldn't mind having to do a bet with his fellow teammates. But now that he thought about it, he wished he wouldn't have overreacted so bad. On his first day of training, Kakashi had found out the weakness of all three of them, Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura. And of course his was that he felt anyone else trying to help him would only get in his way of winning and completing a mission. Sasuke knew that, but he never gave it a thought. Now that he was really going to become a ninja, he needed to learn to work with others, no matter what. No matter who they were. It was important. He knew that whatever Kakashi taught him would be the final word in his mind. 

"Sorry I overreacted...I just..." Sasuke didn't know what else to say. He wasn't good at this type of stuff. "Just...Let's just figure out what the bet should be on."

"So, is that a yes to the team bet?" Lee asked with a little curiosity but more with fear that the question would open up another explosion from the volcano known as Mt. Sasuke.

"Yeah...It is." said the now somewhat relaxed Sasuke. He had decided to stop this immaturity that was starting to take over his emotions. He would not have it.

"Alright! Now let's set up the bet!" And so Rock Lee and Sasuke were brainstorming in their own ways of things that would challenge them. And of course it would have to be something that they both agreed on. Duh!

"How about the first team to do 1000 push ups each? Yeah!!"

"And how does that measure intelligence and teamwork? Remember? It has to incorperate all three..."

"Oh yeah. I wonder how those Chunnin Exam people made up our exams..."

"Well, the first exam was written, and even though we all needed to pass together, it didn't require strength, the second was in the forest, and the third required no teamwork because we all had to fight one-on-one..."

"Wait! The Forest Exam! That is a well-rounded bet! So, wait, we can't do the whole "steal the Earth and Heaven scrolls from the other teams" thing because it's only us two teams..."

"Why don't we all just fight and whoever lives wins!!! Which will be me of course!"

"Shut up Naruto. Lee and I are trying to think intelligently here. Ok, so it should be in the forest. But what should it be? Who ever survives wins?"

"Well...Wait a minute, so you mean everyone's gonna die except for one guy?"

"OR GIRL!!!"

"Sorry Sakura! Forgive me my love!"

"No, a whole team could survive together."

"Don't you think that's a little too serious, fighting to the death?"

"Well, if you are that scared about it, we won't kill each other. But remember, the forest IS called the Forest of Death, so there is a chance we could die by other means."

"Yeah...So, we're back at the beginning. Should it be whoever survives?"

"Well, you said it was going too far, so we can do something less life-threatening...Hmm..."

"How about, we all get separated in the forest. Then, the first thing you gotta do is try and look for our other teammates. And there could be a chance you run into an enemy, so you gotta fight them. They have to accept. I guess we could have some exceptions if something gets really serious. But anyways, you either give up,if you think you are going to lose, or...you die."

"I thought you said it was too dangerous."

"No, but that's how the Chunnin exams were. If you really think you are going to die, we're not about to go and kill each other. We are friends, so if you feel severely hurt, and we do not notice, tell us that you give up."

"Ok."

"But maybe we should have a Jounin watch over the whole bet, just in case."

"We can't."

"Why not?"

"Because they wouldn't approve of our doing a bet, much less watch over it. And they'd especially not let us do it in the Forest of Death!!! We can't tell anyone, alright?"

"Ok."

"Ok."


	5. Chapter 5: Determination and Bait

**Disclaimer:** I am definitely not the the owner of Naruto. If I were, um, Naruto wouldn't be wearing such a silly outfit, and I wouldn't have made such an annoying girl, and I would definitely have revealed Kakashi's face by now. Mwuahaha...But alas, things are not at all like that...And I'm probably lying. How do I know I would really do these things?

**Chapter 5: Determination and Bait**

There are many entrances to go into the notorious Forest of Death. But none of them served any purpose to them, as they were all closed off to any intruders that weren't Konoha-friendly or sometimes, dense civilians that didn't know any better. All six genins knew what they were getting themselves into.

When Rock Lee had told Neji of the Hyuuga clan, and his other female teammate Tenten about the situation, they agreed to fight alongside with Lee. They had nothing against the Sharingan prodigy, but they knew that if Lee didn't fight him now, then he would be complaining about his lack of strength for days. He'd maybe even strain himself to the point of utter exhaustion in their training sessions for the next couple of weeks, and they definitely didn't want to see that happen again.

Rock Lee was loyal to his friends, so as soon as he told them about the fight, he also told them that it was to take place inside the confines of the Forest of Death. He also told them that there was a chance of not surviving through it. He didn't want to get his team into something that they would not feel comfortable in doing. Fortunately, to his liking, they agreed of their own accord, and he only hoped that he wouldn't regret it...

Sasuke didn't have to do much explaining to his own team. They had experienced the whole thing firsthand, after all. But of course, he still questioned their thoughts on it. He was sure they weren't all that happy that he had brought them into something so dangerously unnecessary against fellow genins of theirs. So, as soon as Rock Lee had left to, most likely, tell his own team, Sasuke gestured with his hands to both Naruto and Sakura, signaling them to come forward. He spoke seriously. He told them that they didn't have to this if they didn't want to. It wasn't that important to him.

Well, that's what he said anyway, but he had the same attitude towards fighting as Rock Lee did. They both were excited by the thought of it, and adding in a possibility of death only tickled Sasuke's senses even more. Well, perhaps not that far for Rock Lee. And as soon as he had finished telling them everything that could possibly discourage them from fighting, as he did not want to be responsible for any unnecessary whining later on, Naruto was the first to speak.

"Sasuke! Of course we're gonna help you! Well, I don't know about Sakura, but I'm definitely in!!"

"Hey! I'm in too! Anything for my team, especially Sasuke-kun..." 3

"Well, are you guys positively sure...Because, you know, you COULD die. And, well, I wouldn't want anything seriously bad to happen to you guys..."

"Yeah..."

"Have you forgotten everything we've been through? It was all dangerous, and we stuck together and survived. When Kakashi had told us about the Chunin exam, we didn't know it had to be entered as a team of three. We didn't know that if one of us decided not to take, none of us could. Because if he HAD said that, we would have forced Sakura, even with her uncertainty, to enter the Chunin exam...Even then, we sacrificed our own personal interests for others, without knowing it..."

"Yeah! And during the Chunin Exam, Naruto sacrificed himself in order for all of us to be able to go on to the next part of the exam. He did it knowing that there was a chance that he could stay a Genin forever and lose his chance at becoming Chunin!!"

"Yeah, but this is different. We're fighting against three incredibly awesome ninjas! And we don't have Kakashi or Pakkun or ANYONE to help us out. I just wanted to make sure that, you know, you were alright with this.

"WE ARE!!!!!!"

"Well...Ok then..."

And so now, all of them were standing in front of one of the many entrances to the Forest.

"So, how are we going to get in there..." asked Sakura with uncertainty that anyone would know the answer to her question. She also asked it with another uncertainty looming in the back of her head. She wasn't sure she could go through with it all. She didn't question her will to do anything for her teammates, she just questioned her ability to perform. I mean, would she only get in the way. Would it be like every other time when both Naruto and Sasuke shined in the spotlight and she got stuck in the back fixing the outfits for their next scene?

She wouldn't have that. In order to be useful for her team, she would have to go after Tenten, which meant that she would have to at least keep up with her ability and also, manage to dodge those incredibly precise attacks of hers.

Although most of the six Genins also had questionable looks on their faces, there was one that only grinned.

"Well, I asked Shikamaru about how we could get in." Naruto started saying. "I know we aren't supposed to tell anyone about what we're doing, so I just told him that I was just asking out of curiousity."

"What did he say??" Sakura asked with relief on her face and disappointment in her heart. Half of her wished that they would have failed in finding a way in without revealing themselves, so that they would have to just turn back and forget the whole thing.

"Well, he first he called me an annoying idiot. But THEN, he said that the only way that we could possibly get in there would be..."

Everyone leaned in closer to him...

"To kill someone."


	6. Chapter 6: Shikamaru's Solution

**Disclaimer:** I'm taking a break from the not-owning-Naruto thing and telling you instead who shouldn't own it! Those american manga people!! They're calling Chunnin "journeyman"!! Is there any justice? Do these people care to read the manga at all?! What the hell is a journeyman???? Lol, jk...

**Chapter 6: Shikamaru's Solution**

"Kill someone?!" shouted Sakura at the top of her lungs. That is, until she saw the shocked and frightened looks on everyone's faces at the extremely loud noise she had made.

"Yeah..." Naruto started. "Well, unless, we could figure out another way. Well, basically, the reason we need to kill someone is because we need a dead carcass to be found by someone who can open the gate. BUT, the body must be on the other side of the gate, or else there would be no need for anyone to open the gate to find out if the person is OK."

"So basically, what you're saying...is that we need bait?" Rock Lee asked.

Naruto nodded.

"OK, so we'll need to have someone dead on the other side of the gate, so that...we can call...an ANBU, or someone important like that, and tell them what we've found..." Rock Lee was continuing.

"AND THEN, as he is taking the body out, or examining it, we could have one or two of us distract the guy, as the others sneak in. And all the ones who went in just have to hide out for a while, in case the guy looks in that direction or comes back in." Sakura interrupted.

Rock Lee admired her brilliance. He admired everything about her, actually. Her perfect skin. Her bright smiles. Her silly outburst. Her larger than life forehead. Her silky pink hair. Even after she had cut it, she was still the most beautiful girl in the world in his eyes.

"...The gates can be opened from the inside. They did that just in case little kids somehow got in or something, and they'd have a way to get out, you know? So it'll be really easy for the guy who distracted the person to get in, because all that's gotta be done is just have the rest us open the gate for them! It's pretty fail proof. All we gotta make sure of is that we won't be seen and that we have someone who can open the gate fall for the bait..."

The details ensued from there in a group huddle. Details were discussed and any possible things that could go wrong were solved. Tenten and Neji would be the people that would have to lure the person into opening the gate for them, while the rest would sneak in and hide. Some of them had other thoughts going through the back of their heads though. Like how in the next few hours, they would be fighting each other. Maybe even to the death.

"Well, we only have one problem." Naruto suddenly stated after the huddle was almost done. "Are we really going to kill someone?"

"Hmph."

"What Sasuke?" Sakura was startled by the noise Sasuke had made. He was smirking.

"I think Shikamaru lied to you..."

"What do you mean he lied to me?" Naruto asked with a very confused look. 'Why would he lie?' he thought.

"Has Shikamaru ever tried this out himself to see if it actually worked?"

"Ha! Yes! He has! I'm not stupid! It seemed really hard to do, and a little far-fetched, ya know? Having to kill someone? But he told me he did it before and it worked! Wow, he actually killed someone. Why would he wanna go in there, though? Hmm..."

"It seems to me that he just made up some stupid idea on the spot, so that you would leave him alone to sleep or something. I mean, do you think that Shikamaru, NARA Shikamaru, would actually go to the trouble of killing someone?"

"Oh...Yeah...And, he didn't have a reason for going in the Forest of Death either." Naruto scratched his head, crossed his arm, and scrunched his eyes. He hated being tricked. But that was understandable. Shikamaru, what with the IQ of Einstein could trick the whole Genin squad if he wanted to, and, he actually kind of did...But anyways, what bothered him is when he hears that other people find him annoying.

"Exactly. His story had too many holes. Shikamaru HATES work and troublesome things. His idea was just too troublesome to have been done by him. And besides..." Sasuke walked to the gate. "...I talked to him too."

"Did you ask him about our problem?" Tenten asked curiously.

"Well, I tried to figure it out first. But I knew that Shikamaru would probably find the answer days before I did. So, I asked him. With a promise on the side."

"What promise?" It was Sakura's turn.

"If he became Chunin, I would have to help him out with the, as put by him "heavy-duty" missions. I guess he assumed that if he became Chunin, I would be Chunin too..."

"I can't believe he tricked me JUST because I was annoying...HOW am I annoying? Seriously! What is SO bad about me?!?"

"Shut up Naruto!" shouted Sakura. "Ok then Sasuke! Tell us what Shikamaru told you!"

"He said..." Sasuke started, but then a spark came out of his hand. They were facing his back this whole time, and he must have done some seals without them knowing, because they were all surprisde to find a ball of chakra begin to form in his hand, which could only be known as the Chidori that Kakashi had taught him. And out of nowhere, he directed it straight down the gate that separated them from the dangers of the forest.

And the Chidori died out, Sasuke now facing them. "...He said, in his words 'Perhaps a few birds could help you out.' And then, with a really sarcastic and stupid look on his face, he said 'It's just TOO bad you don't have anything like that.' And obviously, my Chidori was the answer. Hehe...Something so simple, yet only someone like Shikamaru could think of it..."

"What a guy, eh?" someone random in the group had commented.

"But wait!" Naruto still had the frustrated tone in his voice. "Ok. So, Shikamaru found me annoying. But he told you! Ugh! Ok! But, why didn't you tell us earlier and saving us all the trouble of thinking?! Especially me! I had ta think A LOT!!"

"Hmph...Hehe..." Once again, that smirk. Sasuke's smirk.

"What?!" Naruto was at his last thread.

Sasuke started walking in the Forest and the rest followed. Even Naruto, in an angry march though. Then he turned around, smirk still pasted on "I needed some entertainment. Waking up early for this had unfortunately made me miss my weekly dose of Saturday morning cartoons."

And with that, they were in. They had made it in the Forest of Death. But it would be in a few days, that that decision they made they would regret. And all they would want to do is get out. Get out of the Forest, and get out of the fight.


	7. Chapter 7: Slowly It Spreads

**Disclaimer:** These disclaimers are getting stupidier every time. There's only so much creative juice in me. It's a good thing Masashi Kishimoto owns Naruto instead of me, or I'd probably have given up and cried in my bed. Good luck with the rest Mr. Kishimoto! Don't let Naruto come here! Ever! Please!!

**Chapter 7: Slowly It Spreads**

"Now we separate."

Sakura looked at Sasuke strangely.

"Separate?"

"Yes. Each one of us has to run along the edge of this forest, walking along the gate until they reach another entrance of the forest."

The Genins had remembered from their Chunin Exam, that the forest had more than one entrance. Separating the teams would be more risky, but it would also cause more fights among the shinobi, which was something they were going for. With each one on their own, there would be more one-on-one fights, which would slowly decrease the number of people, or at least, their ability to fight back strongly, on each team.

And so they walked. And it wasn't until they were all singled out to just themselves, that the searching for opponents had finally begun.

Deja vu.

It was just like the Chunin Exam.

It felt just like it. Hiding from her fellow teammates her own fears and desires of what was occurring. She couldn't even begin to fathom the danger she was putting herself in, knowing that she was officially self-declared the weakest of the weak. But, even just to see that blown up rage in Sasuke's eyes disappear with the declaration of a fight, or better said, a bet, she would strip away all that was left of her strength.

And just as fast as night turned to day, she felt her fear desperately turn to faith. It was true that as soon as she heard that no others, no teachers, no Jounin, were to be involved in this secret battle of theirs, her soul sank to the deepest pits in her heart. But, she also remembered that friendship won over evil. There could be no chance that the other Konoha team, as strong as they were, would be able to take away their lives, as easily as they could to others. Lee loved her more than she could ever know. Tenten appreciated their small, but growing friendship as fellow female Genin. And Neji...

Neji was a lost soul. That was true. But deep down, it was pure. And although it was him that she worried about most of getting their emotions wrapped up into resentment, she had to believe that he would also fall back on their friendship.

But even with all that personal reassurance, Sakura still kept a defensive stance as she wandered the deep ends of the Forest of Death.

With no one appearing in her sight, neither friend nor foe, she had begun to get tired from all the seemingly endless walking she had endured. Her legs gave way, and she plopped down near a large oak. She had brought a ball of rice with her. Sakura had already experienced the Forest and walked its radius, and knowing as much as she could about it from the Chunin Exam, she did all she could to prepare herself for experiencing it a second time around. If it was one thing she could do right, it was taking caution and studying her ass off on the dangers of the Forest of Death.

It would have been nice to sit down for a few minutes and at least catch her breath, but knowing the competitive personalities of the other team she knew they would try to attack. Why she didn't even set up a trap, or do the least bit of something about it, she did not know. A kunai struck the trunk of the oak she had been supporting herself on. It was a mere centimeter from the tip of her ear. As soon as it struck her mind what was going on, she dropped her ball of rice, got up and started jumping from tree branch to tree branch.

Running away was not the best solution, but it was really the only one she could think of in such a tense moment. Knowing what she knew about her opponents, she decided that it could not have been Rock Lee, as she has never seen him use a kunai. Neji didn't either, but perhaps this was an exception. And finally, Tenten. Oh yeah, she definitely uses them as her main attacks, but knowing her impeccable aim, how could she have missed her?

Unless maybe the reason Tenten missed her was because she knew Sakura was going to run away. Perhaps the area where her legs were taking her to was full of traps or dangerous creatures of the forest. Or maybe…Could it have been that this bet was getting to Tenten too? Could she have missed on purpose because of her fear to hurt her friend?

Either way, it was better to stop and face her, Sakura thought. Although she wasn't able to see her fight against Temari that well, since she was still a bit knocked out from her fight with Ino in the Chunin Exam preliminaries, she could still tell that Tenten would not get too close. The most important thing she had to do right now was to watch out for any flying kunai in her direction. Tenten would probably not miss a second time…

And she was right. Two kunai were thrown from the trees to the right of Sakura. If she hadn't been so alert, they would have hit her head on. Thankfully, they had just grazed her right arm, but it still hurt. Sakura quickly back flipped onto the branch of tree behind her. She hid herself well. She could not see a trace of Tenten. It would not be wise for Sakura to get too close, but what else could she do? Just keep on waiting?

So, she ran out to the clearing. She knew that what she had just done would make her completely vulnerable to an attack, but she figured this fight would get nowhere if she didn't some risks. Since when she had gotten so strong, she did not know. There was something about this Forest, she supposed, that brought on a different side to her, but it was still incredibly to believe that she herself was fighting on her own this time, without her friends by her side.

"I'm not running away anymore. I suggest you do the same Tenten."

Her eyes took on a shocked state. Tenten did not realize she had revealed herself to Sakura. In fact, she was pretty sure she could not see her, seeing as she wasn't looking at where she was, so how could she know it was her?

"I know it's you Tenten. And even if it isn't, I'll fight you all the same. I'm not afraid right now."

Did that just come out of her mouth? Sakura wished she had more time to ponder on that but as soon as she was done speaking, her hidden opponent tumbled out of the trees and revealed herself.

"Hello Sakura."

"Hello."

"You know, you _should _be afraid. It is not safe to just put yourself out there believing that you are strong, and that you can get past me…alive."

"What?"

"What, you think I'm not capable of killing you?"

Although sweat started to form at various parts of her body, Tenten gripped her kunai and quickly threw it at Sakura.

It flew at an amazingly quick speed and in a matter of two seconds, cut her on her side.

"Aaaaaaahh!!" Sakura screamed as it blazed past her. It had barely hit her, but it hurt like hell. Would she be able to take a head-on hit?

Just when Tenten threw another one, Sakura performed the hand seals for Kawarimi no Jutsu (Replacement Technique) and the kunai instead struck a log.

Tenten furled (?) her eyebrows and looked on at Sakura in anger and disappointment.

"You're not going to hit me aga…AAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaHHHHHHHHHhhhh!!!"

Tenten began to sweat more and more. She didn't know how much more of this she could take. She had just hit Sakura in her thigh, and it was a full-on hit that had struck her at a tremendous speed.

Sakura was so _frustrated_, so _pissed_ at herself. Even these words could not describe the rage she held inside of her towards herself. She wondered how stupid she must have sounded, probably appearing as if she was all talk. She had promised to become stronger to herself, and for a moment there, she believed she had. What had gone wrong?

Tenten stared at her, but then she turned her attention towards something that had moved in the trees behind Sakura. Could it be one of her teammates?

He had heard her screams and came running for her aid. From the trees he hid in, he noticed that Sakura had been fighting Tenten, and had been losing badly. Her clothes were a bit torn, her arm had a couple slashes, and her upper leg was bleeding profusely. And from what he could see, Tenten did not look to have any wounds on herself. She looked nervous and a bit distracted, so he took that chance to go and rescue Sakura.

"Sasuke!"

He jumped down from the branch and picked up the wounded Sakura. He looked on angrily at Tenten.

All it took was that one look from him to tell her that she was better off running away and reuniting with the rest of her team. The best thing for her to do right now was to find her other friends. She couldn't as well without them. She couldn't take saying all those things to Sakura. But she knew if she hadn't, she wouldn't have found the strength to hurt her.

And with that, Tenten fled.

"Sakura! Are you ok? What happened?"

"Sasuke…Sasuke-kun! You're here! How'd you find me?"

"Oh well, uh, I was just running through the trees and all and I heard you scream…"

"Oh my gosh. I'm such a loser. I can't believe you're seeing me like this."

"Sakura, we need to get you to a safe place right now and find Sasuke!"

"But you are Sasuke!"

"Sorry, I meant Naruto. I'm just a little nervous seeing you like this…so early in the bet…I didn't mean for you to get hurt."

"You're nervous?"

"Yeah…"

But he had barely finished that word when another hidden ninja attacked him head on.

"Sasuke?"


	8. Chapter 8: Deeper and Deeper

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is not mine. Naruto is not mine. Naruto is not mine. ::sighs:: I'm not good at hypnosis...I might as well quit...

**Chapter 8: Deeper and Deeper**

"Sakura! Are you ok? What happened?"

"Sasuke…Sasuke-kun! You're here! How'd you find me?"

"Oh well, uh, I was just running through the trees and all and I heard you scream…"

"Oh my gosh. I'm such a loser. I can't believe you're seeing me like this."

"Sakura, we need to get you to a safe place right now and find Sasuke!"

"But you are Sasuke!"

"Sorry, I meant Naruto. I'm just a little nervous seeing you like this…so early in the bet…I didn't mean for you to get hurt."

"You're nervous?"

"Yeah…"

But he had barely finished that word when another hidden ninja attacked him head on.

"Sasuke?"

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Sakura was ? Before her eyes, she saw...

"Two Sasukes?!?!?"

The ninja that had attacked the Sasuke that had been helping her get up...was Sasuke. But this meant that one of them must not have been Sasuke, and the other must have been using the Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Technique). But which one was the real one.

"Sakura...are you hurt badly?" asked the Sasuke that had attacked.

"No...Wait, which one is really Sasuke??"

"I am. I don't know who you are, but you are not me." continued the same Sasuke.

That made sense. The real Sasuke had heard Sakura's screams and came to the rescue after his imposter had. He seemed to be helping her, but he knew that he wasn't really Sasuke, since HE HIMSELF was Sasuke. So, he attacked.

"You're right..." murmured the imposter. "I'm not..."

"Then show yourself!" shouted Sasuke, kunai still at his neck.

There was a puff of smoke, and a tint of orange, with a bit of yellow...

"NARUTO!?!?!" screamed Sakura to the heavens. With a unbearable pain in her leg, she still managed to kneel, screaming in confusion "Why would you transform into Sasuke?!?!?"

"..." Naruto looked ashamed.

"Whatever." spoke up Sasuke. "Now that we're together, we should start looking for the others. There is a good chance that now that Tenten knows that there are at least two of us together, that she won't come after us. She'll probably try and find someone else on her team."

"You're right. And we should get out of this clearing. She might still be around spying on us. But, Naruto?!? Why did you do that?"

The truth was he had transformed for the same reason he had transformed into Sasuke the last time. He liked Sakura, and he knew she liked Sasuke. As soon as he had heard her screaming in pain, he recognized her voice. He wanted to come to the rescue as himself, but he had known that Sakura would probably have wanted it in her heart for Sasuke to come. And so, he wanted to see what it was like to be appreciated like that. He felt that if he had come as Naruto, Sakura would not have seen it as anything special. And that saddened him.

As soon as Sasuke had attacked him, he had felt like an idiot. Now how would he tell them...

"I just felt like it..." WOW, Naruto thought, I've never felt this...sad and low...If I don't act like myself, they're probably only going to suspect it more...

So he put on a grin, and put his hands behind his head and just said "Heehee. I was just messing around! It was fun! And it scared off Tenten, so I guess that was good too!! Now come on! Let's go kick some freaking Hyuuga ass!!"

Sasuke grinned. And Sakura just smiled. "Hehe". Inner Sakura said "ALL RIGHT!!!"

The three had walked out of the clearing, and decided to start heading towards the center of the forest. As they walked, they kept extreme caution. Well, as much as they could with such a loud Naruto...

"And then, after taking off almost every piece of clothing I had on, I realized, whoa! NOW I REMEMBER! I had hidden the ramen coupon behind my forehead protector! It's sooo funny how you try to help yourself out, but in the end, only end up causing more trouble for yourself...Hehe..."

"Quiet Naruto." started Sasuke. "These guys could be anywhere. Just imagine how much ground Lee could be covering with his speed. And Neji could just look through this whole forest, as far as his vision would let him. Let's try to keep as silent as possible."

"Alright!" shouted Naruto. Sakura squeamished under his loudness. And Naruto realized his mistake. And so he whispered, "I mean, alright!"

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Tenten realized she had to find either Lee or Neji. If she was found by Sasuke and Sakura together, they could really beat her up...So, thought Tenten, my strategy right now is to keep a low cover, and cover as much ground as I can in finding my other teammates. If I find an enemy, run. Don't be stupid...Don't be stupid...

She jumped through the trees, in search of them,

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The sun started to set. With so many trees surrounding them, it was obvious that they weren't going to get much sunlight. They were not in any immediate danger, regarding their number, but although he had bandaged up Sakura's wound, he was afraid if they did not rest, she would only become worse in the morning.

"You guys, let's camp here for tonight. We could take turns staying up, just in case someone finds us."

"I agree." ...agreed Sakura. --;;

"Okay!" whispered Naruto.

They laid down their things near a huge, sheltering tree. The only one that had brought a blanket was Sakura. They all knew that this was most likely gonna last more than a day, but both Naruto and Sasuke didn't think about needing one...Sakura even brought a pillow!

Once Sakura had realized that neither of them brought anything to lay their heads on, and to cover themselves with, she became sympathetic.

"I only have a pillow and a blanket. You guys will have to share...One of you can use the pillow, and one of you can use the blanket. Is that ok?"

"No! No! Hehe..." both Sasuke and Naruto said simultaneously.

"Seriously Sakura, you need to rest, so that you'll feel better tomorrow! Just use them!! We'll be ok!!" said Naruto, scratching the back of his head, and giving her a nice, big smile.

"Yeah. We're fine." continued Sasuke. "Besides, I'm gonna be keeping first watch, so I don't need anything, since I won't be sleeping."

"No! I want to keep watch!" argued Naruto.

"Stop shouting, idiot."

"Only if you let me keep watch!!"

"Only if you stay awake, and don't get us killed."

"I will! Hey! Who saved Sakura here?!?!"

"Whatever..."

And with that, Naruto crossed his arms in both satisfaction and dis-satisfaction, and turned his back to them.

"I think it would be better if you opened your eyes...That way you can see if anyone's coming...?" Sasuke had noticed Naruto had closed his eyes, probably out of spite.

"Right...I knew that!"

"Sasuke-kun?"

Sakura had spoken up and surprised Sasuke. He thought that she had probably fallen asleep by now. But how could she though, he thought, with that big loud mouth?

Sasuke just faced Sakura, giving her the signal that he had heard her, but did not say anything.

"Do you want the blanket or the pillow?"


End file.
